The late Obert C. Tanner and the late Grace Adams Tanner, provided funds to establish the Tanner Philosophical Library in the mid-1960's, and to add a second room in 1979. In 1985, the Tanners established the Obert C. Tanner Philosophy Endowment to support the Library. The Endowment is committed to Library operations, staffing, and furnishings. In the mid-1990's, the Tanner Charitable Trust enhanced the Endowment and its expendable accounts, enabling the department to renovate the existing Library. The renovation saw the expansion to a combined Library Annex and seminar room. The Department is grateful to the Right Reverend Carolyn Tanner Irish (B.A., ’62), Chair of the Board of the Trust, for making recent enhancements possible. The Library, long the envy of other departments, remains a gem. The University and Department also enjoys the benefactions of the Tanner family as a permanent site of the annual Tanner Lectures on Human Values.
